Ending Pennsylvania's General Assistance Was Penny Wise but Pound Foolish

Earlier this week, I was on The War Room with Jennifer Granholm on Current TV to discuss the end of Pennsylvania's General Assistance, a last resort program for very poor Pennsylvanians who cannot work because of an illness or disability and don’t qualify for other assistance. It has provided a ladder up and out of poverty for thousands of Pennsylvanians before that ladder was taken down on Wednesday.

As I said on the show, "Cutting the General Assistance Program was penny wise but pound foolish. It's bad for the individuals, but it also means that we're going to see an increase in demand for more costly services — we're going to see more people in homeless shelters, more people on the street, more people in emergency rooms, and more people in jails instead of recovery. We don't need that. You and i will be paying for it."

Take a few minutes to watch the clip.

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